Book overview The Spanish conquest of the Americas is a pivotal part of the history of colonization.Columbus and his expeditions, which encouraged other Europeans to start colonizationThe makeup of indigenous American societies, from their social hierarchies and complex cultures to diverse political structuresColonization of the Caribbean islands and the establishment of the Spanish West IndiesThe arrival of Hernán Cortés and his groundbreaking expedition into the Aztec Empire in modern-day MexicoThe conquest of the Maya civilization in the Yucatán Peninsula and the power dynamics between different power-hungry conquistador groups thereThe magnificent Inca Empire in the South American Andes and its conquest by Francisco PizarroStories of infamous expeditions and the problems the conquistadors encountered